The Boulton family are a well known early family from the Porirua District. Edward Boulton arrived in New Zealand in

1837 and was engaged in whaling on Kapiti Island before settling in Pauhatanui. In 1852 Edward Boulton is recorded as a stockholder[i] from Pauhatanui and lived in the area up to his death in 1897.

Edward Boulton had six sons and seven daughters, and one of his sons, also named Edward Boulton, established a home at Golden Gate, Paremata.

1904 The Boulton family home, Golden Gate, Paremata

Edward Boulton (jnr) and his wife Matilda had seven children four sons and three daughters. The third son, and fourth child, Kenneth Henry Boulton was born on the 27th June 1894.

Kenneth (Ken) grew up at Golden Gate, Paremata and in 1904 was enrolled at the new Plimmerton School. To get to Plimmerton Ken, may have like other from Paremata, walked across the railway

bridge that spanned the harbour.

After leaving Plimmerton School, Kenneth Henry Boulton went to Wellington Technical College where he received certificates in engineering in 1909, 1910 and 1911[iii] before leaving the college to start work.

The declaration of war on 4 August 1914 saw two Boulton brothers

enlist. Kenneth (Ken) enlisted first on 14 August 1914, with an older

brother Charles Daryl Boulton enlisted four days later.[iv]

Prior to enlistment Ken was working as a storeman for S & W MacKay,

a large Wellington company specialising in bookselling and stationery.

Ken’s enlistment papers note that he had completed three years

compulsory military training with the 5th (Wellington) Regiment and

then had transferred to the New Zealand Field Artillery as a member

of the D (Wellington Mountain) Battery prior to the declaration of war.

Ken Boulton entered camp as 8/809 Private Boulton and was allocated

to the 14th South Otago Company of the Otago Infantry Battalion.

Private Kenneth Bolton (standing) with his brother,

Gunner Charles Boulton c September 1914,

Private Boulton sailed from Port Chalmers, Dunedin on the 16th

Ocotber 1914 heading for Egypt. In Egypt there was intensive training

for the landing at the Dardanelles.

Both Boulton brothers landing at ANZAC Cove in the first days of the

campaign.

Initially the Otago Infantry were held in reserve then moved to

defensive lines but the key to the ANZAC position was a hill, Baby 700.

The capture of this position would force the Turks back onto Third Ridge and give the besieged in ANZAC Cove much needed breathing space allowing them to go onto the offensive.[vi] The Otagos were part of the forces committed but due to a number of delays they ended up attacking in daylight against prepared Turkish forces. The result was a disaster for with the Otagos as they and other Allied troops were forced back from Baby 700 to their original positions.

‘No complete account exists of the losses suffered by Otago in this attack. The War Diary records five offices wounded, eight missing, 11 men killed, 174 wounded and 208 missing, leaving a strength of 365 out of 800

who went into the attack. But in truth the Otagos never knew how many were lost.’[vii]

Private Boulton was one of the missing and his family in Paremata received a telegram from the government to this

effect.

Later on 19 May 1915, Turkish forces attacked in the same area against alerted ANZAC forces, the results were a disaster for the Turks with 10,000 casualties, 3,000 of them killed. The number of casualties in the area resulted in an armistice day, 24 May 1915, to enable the dead to be buried.

Private Boulton’s service record lists that he was missing between 1 and 23 May 1915 and it was not until a Court of Enquiry was held in Egypt in 20 January 1916 that Private Boulton and many other from the Otago Infantry were declared ‘missing believed to be killed.’[viii]

8/809 Private Kenneth Henry Boulton’s, 1914-15 Star, British War and Victory medals were sent to his father at Golden Gate, Paremata. Later a commemorative scroll and plaque were also sent to the family.

Kenneth Henry Boulton is remembered on the Pauhatanui War Memorial, the Lone Pine Memorial at Gallipoli and on